Google enables Indian developers to sell paid apps on Google Play Store

In a turn that will help boost the morale of Indian app developers, search giant Google has added India to the list of countries from which developers can register as Google Checkout merchants. What this basically means is that Indian developers will be able to sell paid applications via the Google Play Store (earlier, Indian developers had to open accounts in countries that supported this service so that they could sell Android apps).

While Google did not come out with an announcement for the same, it quietly added India to the list (see pic below). “We’re working hard to add more countries, but we’re unable to provide any guidance on timelines. Please stay tuned!”

The company also pointed out some important points that the developers had to keep in mind. These included:

The Google Checkout account that developers need to link to their Google Play developer account can only be linked once from within the developer account interface.

Once the accounts are linked, they cannot be removed, changed or updated. If a developer wants to do this, they will have to sign up for a new developer account by paying a fee of $25.

The company has been rolling out the ability to set prices in multiple currencies over several months but if a particular location is not yet enabled for selling in multiple currencies, developers will only be able to set a price in their home currency. This basically means that Indian developers will only be able to sell in Indian rupees as of now.

Also, once the price for an application is set, developers can choose to change it at any time. But once an application is published for free, you cannot later add a price to that app. Developers will need to create new app (with their Application Package File) and add a price.

For those who don’t already know, Google follows the 30:70 model where it takes 30 per cent of the total app price as transaction fees and developers get the rest. And if an app sells digital goods (like in-game purchases) or subscriptions, the company takes 30 per cent of that amount as well.